


Fly, Little Bird

by firefright



Series: Talon and the Hood [1]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, DCU (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Dick Grayson is a Talon, First Meetings, Gen, Hints of Future Attraction, Jason Todd is Robin, Memory Loss, Threats of Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-22
Updated: 2016-02-22
Packaged: 2018-05-22 15:31:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,733
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6085065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firefright/pseuds/firefright
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Robins shouldn't chase Owls, a fact Jason realises only after it's too late.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Fly, Little Bird

**Author's Note:**

> Hey look, it's that first meeting between Jason and Talon I said I'd eventually get to.
> 
> Warning for threats of violence against minors, which is par the course for a Robin.

Jason's heart is in his mouth as he runs.

Because somewhere, in the very recent past, he made a very bad decision.

_Stay away if you see him, Robin. Report immediately back to me and stay put._

Jason really wishes he'd listened to Bruce's order now.

It had been nothing at first, just a glimpse of a piece of shadow that didn't fit in with the rest on a rooftop. Then, as Jason watched from his perch high up on a chimney, that shadow had resolved itself into black hair and pale skin, the cold face of a teenage boy Jason had never thought he'd see again.

Dick Grayson. Robin. _Talon_.

The Court of Owls case had been closed six months ago except for this one loose end, so can Jason really be blamed for forgetting procedure when he saw his predecessor emerge out into the night in front of him? He'd thought the guy might be dead, though Bruce still seemed to hold out hope. In fact, it was the thought of that very hope that spurred Jason into action in the first place.

Instead of doing the sensible thing and calling for Batman, Jason tried to follow Talon by himself, weaving through dark rooftops and tall smoke stacks as quietly as he possibly could. The old industrial side of Gotham was treacherous in its layout, and filled with hiding spots that all kinds of bad guys liked to take advantage of. So it was hardly surprising that Grayson had wound up hiding in this corner of the city after fleeing the superhero duo before. 

In this maze Jason knew that waiting would surely mean losing track of the amnesiac assassin, so he'd reasoned to himself that rather than just giving Bruce the report of a single sighting it would be so much better if he could lead him directly to Talon's hideout instead.

(Then maybe Bruce will look at him like he's proud. Maybe then he'll smile and treat Jason like something other than a pale imitation of the boy he'd lost. Jason's so tired of being held back in Dick Grayson's shadow, he wants to prove himself capable once and for all.)

But unfortunately he'd completely underestimated the skill of his opponent.

It had barely been a sound, just the lightest scrape of Jason's pixie boots against a loose roof tile, but it was more than enough for the Talon to catch on to him. He was so completely outmatched that Jason hadn't even realised he'd given himself away at first, confident as he was that what he was doing was right. Then he'd rounded the corner of a factory and come face to face with a nightmare.

"Fuck!"

Now Jason's doing the only sensible thing possible: he's running.

"Shit, shit, shit!" He gasps as he drops and rolls into a gap between buildings, scrambling through a space so small it can barely be called an alley, to emerge through the other side into an unfinished construction sight. "Come on, come on..." There has to be _somewhere_ he can hide.

If Jason doesn't get himself murdered by the first Robin in the next five minutes he's fairly sure Bruce will kill him later.

He risks a look back and fails to make out anything in the darkness. Gotham is heavily overcast tonight, there's no moon to speak of, and the occasional rumble of thunder keeps breaking through the clouds overhead, hinting at the storm to come.

Damn it, he has no idea where Talon is, which means he's probably going to die any second now in a horribly messy and painful way. He's seen what Talons do to their victims, how their deaths are made to be warnings as much as punishments.

Well screw that, Jason refuses to go down easy. Rather than standing still and waiting for death to come to him he takes a flying leap onto the skeletal scaffolding of what might become an office building if one of Gotham's daily disasters doesn't destroy to it first, grabbing a hanging steel cable to steady himself on a beam. A moment later he realises his mistake, because the cable gives in his hands rather than bearing his weight, and somewhere in the darkness overhead Jason hears something heavy start to come loose.

He barely has time to register the falling metal pipes tumbling down towards him before a shadow streaks out of the darkness and knocks Jason out of the way.

Their landing is terrible, though Jason thinks it hurts Grayson more than it hurts him since he's on the bottom. He yelps as they skid across the rough ground, coming perilously close to what looks like a garden of spikes sticking up out of the wet earth. 

Someone really needs to contact this company and talk to them about safe work site practices, but if he tells Bruce that he'll probably just remind Jason he needs to be more mindful of his surroundings instead.

As soon as they stop sliding Jason lashes out with his feet and elbows, trying to get free of the Talon. The guy's probably only saved him so he can have the pleasure of killing Jason himself, up close and personal. But fingers like steel bands close around Jason's biceps, flipping him expertly over in the mud which - ew, is soaking right through the stupid scaly briefs that are part of his uniform and whose fault is that? The indignity is enough to make Jason glare up at the killer now straddling him with more bravery than he actually possesses.

"Get offa me!"

His wrists are forced above his head, trapped by a single hand, and the next moment Jason feels cold steel at his throat as gold-ringed eyes look down at him in amusement. "Little bird," Says a voice like silk, "what do you think you're doing?"

"Trying to get away from you, asshole! And I'm _Robin_ , not little bird, ya creep."

"It looks to me like you're just getting yourself into trouble." Jason swallows as the knife traces over his jugular, "Don't you know Robins shouldn't chase Owls?"

"There ain't no Owl's anymore, just you." He replies sullenly. Wrinkling his nose as the first drops of rain start to fall from the sky. "You gonna kill me?"

"I haven't decided yet."

"Well you should make your mind up, I ain't got all night."

Grayson laughs. Then curiously he looks startled, like he's not sure the sound came out of his own mouth. Jason watches him as he seems to think it over and then shakes his head, "You're a funny little bird."

" _Robin_."

"I like little bird better. Since you're so small."

Jason growls in annoyance. That's not his fault, he only started getting three square meals a day a year ago and Alfred promised that he'll grow taller soon. "I'll get bigger."

"I'm sure you will." The knife vanishes from his neck, but Grayson keeps pinning him down. The rain starts to fall in earnest now, sliding off the leather of the black and bronze Talon suit he wears. The mud around this place will probably turn into a sinkhole soon and Jason doesn't want to be here when it does.

Cautiously, he ventures to ask, "Are you letting me go?"

"For now."

"For now?!" He has to speak louder to be heard over the rumble of thunder, and doesn't miss the way Grayson flinches at the next flash of lightning that comes after it. Those eyes that see so perfectly in the dark must be sensitive to bright light sources without goggles to protect them, and that's something Jason files away to use later if he ever gets the opportunity. "What's that supposed to mean?!"

Jason freezes when the Talon leans down to speak into his ear, not expecting his stomach to do the strange flip-flop inside him that it does when icy lips brush his skin. "It means, little bird, that I'll be watching you. I find you interesting."

"Creep." Jason swallows, licking his lips and tasting rainwater on them. He decides now or never is the time to take a risk. "Look, I know who you were, you -"

That hand on his wrists suddenly tightens to bruising force, grinding delicate bones together hard enough to make Jason yelp. It's an effective way to shut him up, that's for damn sure.

"One word to Batman," Grayson now looks decidedly less friendly, and his words are unquestionably a warning, "one single word and I'll really make you regret chasing me. Understand, little bird?"

Mutely Jason nods, too terrified to do otherwise.

"Good."

Then just like that he's gone. Talon's weight vanishes from Jason's hips and he feels like he can suddenly breathe again as he peels himself up out of the mud and rubs his sore wrists with his hands. Squint as Jason might through the dark and rain, he can't make out any trace of which direction Grayson might have headed in. It's almost like he was never there to begin with. Which is scary as all hell.

Fuck, what has Jason gotten himself into?

He waits until his pounding heart has slowed before picking his way out of the construction site and back to the streets. Jason feels disgusting, and he's sure Alfred will have kittens once he sees the state of him, but there'll also probably be hot chocolate so that's okay. Bruce is the one he's really worried about, since Jason's going to have to come up with some explanation that doesn't involve Talon for how he got into this state in the first place.

Doing as Grayson said is a decision he makes without even stopping to consider it. Sure, he doesn't want to test the Talon's patience if he does find out Jason went mouthing off to Bruce about this bizarre encounter, but there's another reason for why he's going to lie to the face of his mentor. Because maybe, just maybe if he can see Talon again, if he can get Talon to speak to him, Jason can bring Dick Grayson back home again for Bruce.

That'll definitely make Bruce proud of him.

Warmed by the thought, Jason makes his way through the freezing rain for his rendezvous point with Batman, focusing more on the call of hot chocolate and warm blankets than the memory of a cold blade at his neck.

**Author's Note:**

> I swear the last chapter of "We'll Take This Town" is coming, I just, er, got distracted by some other things /cough/ Writing bb!Jason is a lot of fun.
> 
> And a heads up for those of you waiting for the sequel to "A Matter of Family", I have the first four chapters written and I'll be starting to post them very soon!


End file.
